A councillor has called on Kirklees officials to apologise to parents and pupils at Almondbury Community School over plans to close it as a high school following a damning Ofsted report.

Almondbury Tory councillor Bernard McGuin has called on the local authority to say sorry after it announced plans for a major reorganisation of schooling which will also affect King James's School in Almondbury and Newsome High School.

Clr Mcguin says the authority should apologise for "failing the pupils".

The changes being proposed would see the closure of Almondbury Community School as a high school and its conversion to a school for pupils aged from three to 11.

Almondbury Community School.

The proposals have been laid out in a letter to parents from Jo-Anne Sanders, service director for learning and early help at Kirklees.

She said: "The possible changes mainly affect Almondbury Community School, King James's School and Newsome High School.

"Almondbury Community School is an 'all-through' school for children aged from 3 to 16 years (including nursery), while King James's and Newsome are both secondary schools.

"The number of pupils at Almondbury Community School (ACS) has been reducing over recent years and, further to this, an Ofsted report published last month stated that the school was 'inadequate' and requires 'Special Measures'.

"Work is ongoing to make improvements at ACS. At the same time, decisions are needed on whether ACS is sustainable in the long term and whether it is in the community's best interests for the school to continue in its current form."

The letter goes on to say that parents and other parties will be consulted on the plans, before adding: "The possible change would see the age range reduced so that ACS catered only for children aged 3 to 11 years.

"This would mean removing the secondary phase of the school over a period of time still to be determined. ACS would remain open as a primary school, serving local children and families."

Kirklees is proposing to accommodate the 300 secondary pupils at ACS at other secondary schools, mainly King James's and Newsome.

Kirklees councillor Bernard McGuin (Image: Bernard McGuin)

"In the future, children who currently attend secondary school at ACS would have priority for a place at a different school, mainly King James's or Newsome," Kirklees has told parents in the letter.

The changes will not take place before the summer of 2020, according to Kirklees Council which has emphasised that no decisions have yet been made.

Clr Bernard McGuin, who has been inundated with calls from anxious ACS parents, said: "I reluctantly support the gradual run down of ACS and the ending of secondary provision."

He added: "I hope someone from Kirklees will officially apologise to the parents and pupils at the 3-16 all through Almondbury Community School.

"After one major reorganisation in Almondbury, in 2014, owing to the Junior school going into Special Measures, another

reorganisation has to be made shortly, as the school created then has itself gone into Special Measures.

"As a councillor for the area I am fielding complaints from anxious parents concerned about their children's schooling. "I can say

honestly I have tried my best, since elected in 2016, to engage with the school but was not made to feel welcome at the school.

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"The school was doomed to failure by the fact that it was very insular and did not accept outside help even when confronted by accusations of racism and bullying.

"I take no pleasure in being instrumental in reporting allegations against the school when contacted by the pupil seen in the incident, on social media, that went viral.

"The failure to deal with this pupil's complaints was apparently part of a pattern of failing some pupils that caused Ofsted to declare the school "inadequate".

He is urging parents to take part in the consultation process and let Kirklees know their thoughts.

"As an ex-teacher myself I am confident that King James's School can cope with the extra pupil numbers who would go there. But it is important that I, as a representative of the community, listen to what people think."